Starting device



H. P. CHANE-JLER ET AL 1,960,966

STARTING DEVICE Fild April 2, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inventors HOMER F? CHAND R By SAMUiL/MS Attorney I H. P. CHANDLER El AL 60,966

May 29, 1934.

' STARTING DEVICE Filed April 2, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 I o Inventor HOMER P CHANDLER SAMUEL 6? MA By May 29, 1934.

H. P. CHANDLER El AL STARTING DEVICE 5 Sheet-Sheet 3 Filed April 2, 1932 I I I I Inventors HOMER P CHANDLER SA MUEL 8. MAT

May 29, 1934.

H. P. CHANDLER ET AL ,960,966

STARTING DEVICE Filed April 2, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 4/ --|||l|||l|l|- BATTERY BATTERY '39 7'0 IGN/T/ON I RELAYg 40, 40 A2 1:

Inventors Attorney May 29, 1934.

H. P. CHANDLER El AL 1,960,956

STARTING DEVICE Filed April 2, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 -l|||||l||||. I v

BATTERY flaw? LE v 5 H I I I I I BATTERY V l 462 k l RELAY I \3 nummJ BATTERY Inuen'lors HOMER P CHANDL). SAMUEL S. [155 Attorney Patented May 29, 1934 UNITED STATES yPATENTj' O FFlCE STARTING DEVICE Homer P. Chandler and Samuel S. Matthes, Mansfield, Ohio Application April 2, 1932, Serial No. 602,710

.16 Claims.

engagement with the engine or other device-to be started instantly upon such enginev or device starting. I

Another object of our invention is to provide a starter-"which in throwing into and out of engagement with the engine does so in a direction transversely to the axes of the engine and starter.

Another object is to provide a starter which will automatically throw into operative engagement with the engine or device to be started at will of the operator. Y

Another object of our invention is a starter which will immediately and automatically throw out of engagement with the engine while in operation should such engagement take'place accidentally or unintentionally and which will automatically be rendered inoperative as a starter for the time being. I I

Another object of our invention is to provide friction elements in place of toothed gears as the means of drive between the starter and the engine and a further object is to provide the elements with cooperating wedging action.

Another object is to provide starting means which will render the engagement of the starter with the engine as noiseless as possible.

Another object is to provide starting means which will engage and disengage the driven member on the engine with a minimum amount of shock.

Another object of our invention is to utilize the torque set up in the motor toaocomplish the engaging and disengagingof the starter with the engine. 7

Another object of our invention is to provide starting means which will automatically be thrown into driving engagement with the driven element on the engine provided the engine should accidentally stall and which automatic starting of the engine is independent of any acts on the part of the operator.

Other objects and benefits willbe disclosed and evident to those skilled in the art as our description of our invention proceeds.

Our invention resides in the new and novel construction, combination and relation of the various parts herein described and shown inthe drawings accompanying this specification.

In the drawings:-

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of the relation of the starter to the engine when in the inoperative relation.

Fig. 2 is a. schematic drawing showing the rela-' tion of the starter to the engine when the starter is in operative relation to the engine, that is, when driving the engine.

Fig. 3 is a schematic view showing the relation 7 'between the starter and engine but in which the starter engages the engine driver at a'point below the horizontal center line X-X.

Fig. 4 is a schematic drawing looking down upon the starter and engine to show their installed relation when applied to an engine-driven car.

Fig. 5 shows the relation of the driving element on the starter-to the driven element on the engine when the starter is in its non-starting position.

Fig. 6 shows the relation of the driving element on the starter to the driven elementon the engine when the starter is in driving engagement with the driven element on the engine.

Fig. 7 is a topview of our engine starter.

Fig. 8 is an end view of our starter looking at the driving element end of Fig. '7.

Fig. 9 is an end view of Fig. 7 opposite to that of Fig. 8.

Fig. 10 is a longitudinal view in partial section taken on the line 10-10 of Fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is a side view of our starter shown in Fig. 9.

Fig. 12 is a transverse view in partial section taken on the line 12-12 of Fig. 11.

Fig. 13 is a sectional view taken on and confined to the line 1313 of Fig. 11.

Fig. 14 is a schematic view showing the relation of .certain of the elements and diagram of connections when the starter is at rest and out of operative engagement with the engine.

Fig. 15 is a schematic view as in the case of Fig. 14 but in which the starting switch has been closed and the starter-in motion and in operative engagement with the engine.

Fig. 16 shows a schematic drawing as in the case of Fig. 14 in which the starter is at rest and out of operative engagement with the engine (which is now in motion) but ready to be automatically thrown into operative engagement with the engine should the engine stall or the generator cease to generate.

Fig. 17 shows schematic connections for operating the starter through manual control only.

Fig. 18 shows sectional view of attachment for Fig. 22 is a schematic drawing corresponding.

to Fig. 21 except the starting switch is closed and the motor is in starting engagement with the engine.

Fig. 23 is a schematic drawing similar to Fig. 22 in which thestarter is at rest and out of operative engagement with the engine (which is now in motion) but ready to be automatically thrown into operative engagement with the engine should the engine stall or the generator cease to generate.

In the preferred embodiment of our invention we provide a frame 1 which may be mounted upon a bracket 2 by means of the bolts 3. The bracket may be of any suitable construction and preferably secured to the engine frame.

The frame 1 has an end portion 4 which is provided with a flange 5 which cooperates with the bracket 2 to prevent relative lateral or transverse shifting of the starter with respect to the engine 6. The frame 1 is also provided with a detachable end member 7 secured by means of the bolts 6. The end members 4 and 7 also act as bearings for the motor M.

The motor M may be of the usual type employed for starters comprising a field frame 9, field coils 10, end members 11 and 12, armature 13 with its commutator 14, brushes 15 and shaft 16. v

In mounting starting motors it is usual to have the motor frame 9 with its end members 11 and 12 in fixed relation to the engine 6 but we so mount the starting motor M that it will move laterally relative to the engine or the starting element on the engine with which the starter is to engage and to bring about this lateral movement of the starter relative to the engine we make use of what is termed the starting torque in the motor. We also utilize the torque in the motor to maintain the starter in operative engagement with the starting element on the engine and we also make use of a weakened torque in the motor for disengaging the starter from the engine when the engine is running of its power and independent of the driving force in the starter.

It will be recognized that our starter differs materially from those on the market in which the motor drives mechanism which moves in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the starter.

Referring to Fig. 10 it will be noted that the axis Y of the armature and its shaft 16 is central with respect to the field frame 9 as is usual with starting motors. The motor frame with its armature, however, is mounted to rotate relative to the starter frame 1 but about the axis Z which is eccentric'to the motor frame 9 and axis Y of the armature 13. The end members 11 and 12 are provided with bearings 1'7 and 18 respectively which are mounted in the members 4 and 7. It will be evident that the bearings between the armature shaft 16 and the end plates 11 and 12 may be of any approved design as, for instance, of the roller or ball bearing type and the same 1,960,966 engine carburetor for controlling the operation,

is true of the bearings between the members 1'? and 4, and 18 and '7. We have shown merely plain bearings for simplicity.

The eccentricity of the axes Y and Z and relation of the bearings are shown in Fig. 13. It will be evident that if the member 17 rotates or pivots about its axis Z in the member 4 which is nonrotatable and fixed with relation to the engine then the axis Y of the shaft 16 will tend to revolve or pivot about the axis Z. It will also be evident that if the shaft 16 is provided with an engaging element 19 and the starter is positioned in proper relation to the starter element 20 on the engine, the element 19 will move toward the element 20 on the engine and engage with the same when the axis Y rotates in one direction about the axis Z and disengagement of the elements 19 and 20 will take place when the axis Y rotates about the axis Z in the opposite direction.

It is well known that there is a force or torque existing between the rotating element or armature of an electric motor and its fixed or stationary field and that if the armature were arranged so that it could not rotate and the field were free to rotate, the field would either rotate or tend to rotate about the axis of the armature. It is this principle which we make use of in our starter for moving the starter into and out of engagement with the engine. It is also known that this torque will vary with the load on the motor and this load must be overcome by an opposing force within the motor itself and which will vary with respect to the external load which may be placed upon the motor.

In the case of the starter herein described both the motor and field are free to rotate relative to each other and to the frame 1 and we find that upon energizing the motor, the torque set up between the armature and field is sufficient to instantly set up a rotation in opposite directions between the field and armature in which case the field and its bearing 17 will rotate as shown by the arrow in Fig. 13 about its axis Z and relative to the fixed member 4 and the armature and its shaft 16 will not only rotate about its axis Y in the direction shown by the arrow in Fig. 13 but will also pivot or revolve about the axis Z and into operative engagement with the engine.

In Fig. 13 the relation of the parts are those when the starter is in engagement with the engine and the path of travel of the axis Y into and out of engagement with the engine is indicated by the dotted line B, the center of which is Z.

The starter may be provided with an overcenter spring 21 if desired for assisting in rotating the starter about its axis Z and in holding it in its out position. Ihe device may also be provided if desired with a fixed stop to limit the rotation of the starter in a disengaging direction and this stop 21 secured to motor M may be of any suitable character as between the frame 1 and motor M.

In Fig. 1 the starter is shown as positioned above the horizontal center line of the engine driven element 20 and out of engagement therewith. Since the axis Z is fixed with relation to the axis A of the engine and since the motor 9 and the armature 16 will rotate or pivot about the axis Z then it will be noted that the element 19 will be moved toward the element 20 and into engagement therewith. The arrows indicate the direction of movement of the elements relative to each other.

Fig. 2 is similar to Fig. 1 excepting that the relation of the parts are shown when the' starter is in engagement with the engine.

In Fig. 3 the starter is shown as positioned below the horizontal center line of the driven element 20 and in this case the starter is held out of engagement with the engine through gravity acting upon the motor M. 'If desired the spring 21 may also be employed.

In Figs. 5 and 6 the starting element 19 is shown in enlargement and we prefer to make the element 19 of a fibrous material such as paper or cotton fabric treated with a synthetic resin such as a phenolic condensation product or the condensation product of phenol and formaldehyde known by the trade name Bakelite and such material is then compressed either into the form shown in Figs. 5 and 6 with the grooves and projections thereon or the material may be compressed into blanks and the grooves machined therein. The number of flanges and grooves may vary as required and we may term the elements 19 and 26 friction grooved gearing or friction wedge-surface gearing and hereinafter refer to the member 19 as a pinion and to the member 20 as a gear.

The gear 20 is usually the engine flywheel and is provided with counterpart grooves and projections corresponding with those onthe pinion 19 but the gear 20 may be of any suitable metal. The angle C of the face of the projections may vary but we have found that a 20 angle is very practicable. The force holding the members 19 and 20 in engagement and preventing relative slippage is dependent upon or may be said to be a function of the starter torque and. the force tending to rotate the starter about its axis Z and to move the pinion 19 in engagement with the gear 20 is also a function of the torque, therefore, as soon as the pinion 19 engages the gear 20the torque in the starter increasesinstantly due to the fact that the ,element 19 for an instant engages with the non-rotating gear 20, therefore, the frictional engagement between members 19 and 20 is a maximum at the instant of .engaging and will decrease as the resistance to the rotation of the gear 20 or the engine decreases and when the engine starts to rotate under its own power the torque of the starter will be so materially reduced that it will not remain in engagement with the engine but will rotate back to what may be termed its normal or non-starting position.

The reason for the starter throwing into engage-- ment with the engine is due to the fact that there is considerable torque called starting torque set up between the armature and field due to the overcoming of inertia in the parts of the starter. at the instant the starter is energized. This is suflicient to cause engagement of the members 19 and 20.

The field coils 10 are connected in series by means of the conductor 22 and in Fig. 10 one end of one field coil is shown as connected to one brush 15 and the other brush is shown as connected .or grounded to the frame 9 by the conductor 23 and theremaining end of the field coils is connected by means of the conductor 24 to an automatic starting mechanism S shown as mounted upon andinsulated from the member 7 (see Figs. 10 and 12) by insulation 25 and held' in position by means of the bolts 26 which are insulated from the member 18.

The conductor 24 is shown as connected to the automatic switch.S as later described but if the starter is to be used as a'purely manually operated starter then the lead 24 and starter are connected as in Fig. 17 and. the switch 27 may be arranged to be operated by the foot or by hand from the instrument board. When the switch 2'7 is closed the starter is energized and the motor rotates on its axis Z and swings the rotating pinion 19 into engagement with the gear 20 and rotates the sameuntil the engine can maintain its shaped receptacle 31 in which the coil 29 is positioned and is also provided with a downwardly extending flange 32 thus enclosing the coil and working parts of the switch S and protecting the same Secured to the frame 28 by means of the conductor terminal'33 is a springcontact 34. Mounted on the contactor 34 which may be formed of cold drawn phosphor bronze is a contact terminal 35 preferably of bronze or copper.

terminal 35 downwardly or toward the starter. In Fig. 12 the contact 35 is shown as in engagement with a contact 36 mounted on thefield frame 9, and in insulated relation thereto, by means of the bolt 37 and to which the field lead 24 is connected.

The spring contact 34 is provided with an iron armature .38 fixedly secured thereto and acted upon by the frame 28 and core 30 when the coil 29 is energized. The contact 36 is provided with a raised portion 36 and a reduced portion 37".

When the starter is in its normal or inoperative position with respect to the engine and the engine is not running then the contact 35 will engage the portion 37" as shown in Fig. 14 but as soon as the starter is energized andnrnoves into engagement with the engine, the field frame ,9 will have rotated upon its axis Z and the raised portion 36 The spring contact 34 is normally biased to move the contact power circuit to the motor at a predetermined time of rotation of the motor back' to its normal position and such breaking is timed to take place as soon as the meshing of the gears is broken.

Referring now to the diagrams of connections open and the coil 29 will not be energized. Fig.

14 represents the relation of the parts when the engine is at rest and the starter deenergized.

If now it is desired to start the engine the operator will close the ignition and starting switches 40 and 40 respectively as shown in Fig. 15 in which case current will flow from the battery' through the conductor 41 to the spring con-- tact 34 to the contact 36 then through the starter to ground and from there back through the grounded conductor 42 to the battery. This will energize the starter which will rotate on its axis Z and into contact with the member 20 on the engine as previously described and simultaneously the spring contactor 34 will be raised as shown in Figs. 12 and 15.

As soon as the engine rotates of its own power or sufiiciently rapid the generator A will generate and current will flow from the generator through the conductors 43 and 44 to the coil 29 and energize the same and maintain the spring contact 34 in its raised position.

As soon as the. engine is rotating of its own power the starter will drop back to its normal position as shown in Fig. 16 but as the generator A is now supplying current to the coil 29 the contact 35 will be held out of engagement with the contact 36 thus opening the circuit from the battery through the starter.

It will be evident that as long as the generator A is producing sufficient current the coil 29 will be energized and the contact 35 will be maintained out of contact with the contact 36 but should the engine stall and the generator cease to develop power then the relay switch 39 will open and the coil 29 will be cut off from all source of power and the contact 35 will immediately drop back into engagement with the contact 36 as shown in Fig. 14 and since the switch 40 is closed current will immediately flow from the battery through the starter as previously described thus causing the starter to throw into engagement with the member 20 on the engine and start the same.

From this description it will be evident that with the switches 40 and 41' closed, so long as the engine operates and the generator A develops power the starter will remain in its normal .or unengaged relation with the engine but as soon as the engine stalls or the speed of the engine drops so low that the generator does not deliver sufiicient power to properly excite the coil 29 and maintain the contact 35 out of engagement with the contact 36, current will then flow from the battery through the starter energizing the same and starting the engine.

After closing the switches 40 and 40 the operation of the starter is then fully autonuatic and dependent upon current developed by the generator A. The opening of the switch 40; of course, returns the starter to normal condition and removes any possibility of automatic operation. It will thus be seen that if the switch 40 is closed and left closed until the starter has functioned and then opened, the system then operates merely as a manually operated system.

The ends of the coil 29 are connected to the terminal posts 45 and 46 respectively and the conductors 43 and 44 connected to the terminals 45 and 46 respectively.

The automatic control of the operation of the starter may be brought about through other means than that of the generator as for instance through suction or vacuum created by the engine. In Figs. 18, 19 and 20 an attachmentis shown for application to the inlet side of the carburetor which opens and closes a circuit controlling the energization of the coil 29. Other means than this may be employed and which are dependent upon the operation of the engine as, for instance, the oil pressure, the exhaust pressure or a centrifugal governor operated by the rotation of the engine, all of which are dependent upon the operation of the engine.

Mounted upon the intake pipe 50 of the carburetor is the switch V controlled by suction and which is provided with a sleeve member 51 secured to the carburetor by means of set screw 52. Mounted upon the member 51 and insulated therefrom is a contactor 53 and provided with a conductor terminal 54.-

Pivotally mounted at the outer end of the member 51 is a valve disc 55 pivoted on the pin 56 to open inwardly as shown, in Fig. 19. Pivotally mounted upon the pin 56 and independent of the valve 55 is a contact 57 arranged to en gage with the contact 53 when the engine is oper-- ating and there is suction in the valve 55 but which is out of contact with 53 when the engine is at'rest. Projecting upwardly from the valve 55 and integral therewith is an arm 58 and projecting upwardly from the contact 57 is an arm 59 and interposed between these arms is a light spring 60. When the valve 55 is. closed as in Fig. 18 the spring 60 may be under light compression sufiicient to open the contacts 53 and 57 but when the valve 55 is open as in Fig. 19 then the spring 60 is in tension and moves and holds the contact 57 in engagement with the contact 53 thus closing a circuit and grounding "the conductor connected to terminal 54.

In Figs. 21, 22 and 23 are shown schematic arrangements of the parts and connections for different conditions of operation of the starter when controlled by a vacuum valve operated switch which in turn is controlled by the operation of the engine. In this case the switch S is energized from the battery and not from the generator and is independent of the operation of the generator.

The coil 29 is connected'to one side of thev battery through the conductor 61 and the switch 40 which is usually mounted on the instrument board and is opened and closed manually. The conductor 61 is also connected to the spring contact 34 which normally, as shown in Fig. 21,

engages with the contact 36 on the starter. The

other end of the coil 29 is connected to the fixed the battery through the conductor 61, switch 40,

contacts 34 and 36, field coil 10, armature 13 to ground and from there through the grounded conductor 62 back to the battery. This will energize the starter which will then make operative engagement with the engine and in doing so the contact 34 will be raised.

As soon as the engine begins to rotate under its own power then the suction through the carburetor will cause the valve 55 to open and simultaneously close the circuit at the contacts 53 and 57. A circuit will now be completed from the battery through the conductor 61, switch 40, coil 29, conductor 63, contacts 53 and 57 to ground and back to the battery through the grounded conductor 62.

As soon as the engine rotates under its own power then the starter will be deprived of sufficlosed, however, so long as the engine continues to operate or does not drop below a predetermined speed or, in other words, as long as suction through the switch V is sufficient to maintain the valve in its open position.

In connecting up the starter according to the scheme shown in Fig. 21, the conductor 61 would be connected to terminals 33 and 45 on the starter and conductor 63 to terminal 46.

In both the schemes shown in Figs. 1i and 21 if the starter should be inadvertently thrown in while the engine is in operation no harm will result as there are no transverse teeth or ratchets to be engaged and as soon as the starter engages with the engine it'will drop back to its normal or non-meshing position. We use the term mesh with respectto our friction wedge-surface drive in the same sense as the engaging with each other as the teeth of gearing.

The various pieces of apparatus herein described may be modified and produce the same results as set forth by the construction disclosed herein. Such modifications will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and such modifications may fall within the scope of our invention and therefore we do not wish to be limited other than by our claims.

We claim:-

1. Apparatus of the class described, comprising in combination an engine, a current generator driven from the engine, an electric starter motor mounted to rotate and having a starter pinion to drive the engine when the motor is rotated, a source of power connected to the starter to energize the starter and means associated with the motor and affected by the motor rotation and the current-from the generator to control the operation of the starter.

2. Apparatus of the class described, comprising in combination. an engine, a current generator driven from the engine, an electric starter motor mounted to rotate and having a starter pinion to tric motor and gearing mounted on the motor.

armature to start thewengine, the motor mounted to rotate and simultaneously move the gearing into operative relation to the engine when initially energized and to rotate the gearing automat.cally out of operative relation to the engine when the engine has started under its own power and means associated with the starter and affected by the last said motor rotation and the current from the generator to render inoperative the starter motor when the motor has rotated a predetermined amount.

4. Apparatusbf the class described comprising in combination an internal combustion engine, an electric motor, a source of electric power connect- 'ed to the motor to energize the same, gearing between the engine and motor, the motor mounted to rotate upon a longitudinal axis and bring the gearing into and out of operative engagement with each other, a circuit connecting the motor to the source or power, means associated with the starter motor and circuit and affected by the rotation of the motor and the current from the source of supp1y,to render the motor inoperative when the engine starts and operative when the engine stalls and means depending upon the operation or inoperation of the engine to control the operation of the said associated means.

5. A starting device comprising a support, an electric motor having its field mounted on the support to oscillate relative thereto, an armature mounted on the field to rotate relative thereto and to simultaneously revolve about the axis of rotation of the field, a gear secured to the armature to transmitmotion, a circuit breaker associated with the starter and comprising a solenoid and a movable contactor controlled by the solenoid to either open or close a circuit to the motor from a source of supply and mounted on the support, a fixed contact member mounted on the motor field in insulated relation thereto and engaged and disengaged by the movable contactor, one end of the motor winding connected to the fixed contact member and the other end of the motor winding connected to ground and means controlled by the operation of the device to be started to control the energization of the solenoid.

6. The combination of an internal combustion engine, a generator driven from the engine, an engine starter having an electric motor mounted to rotatewhen energized and means associated with the starter and affected by current from the generator and by the rotation of the motor to render the starter inoperative.

' '7. The combination of an internal combustion engine, a generator driven from the engine, an engine starter having an electric motor mounted to rotate when energized and means associated with the starter and affected by current from the generator and, by the rotation of the motor to render the starter inoperative when the motor has rotated a predetermined amount.

8. The combination of an internal combustion engine, a generator driven from the engine, an

engine starter having an electric motor mounted to rotate when energized and means afiectedby current from the generator and by the rotation of the motor to render the starter inoperative. 9. The combination of an internal combustion engine, a source of electric power, an engine starter having an electric motor mounted to rotate when energized from said source of power and means afiected by current from the source of power and by the rotation of the motor to render the starter inoperative. I

' 10. The combination of an internal'combus tion engine, a source of electric power, an engine starter having an electric motor mounted to rotate when energized from saidsource of 'power, means aifected by current from the source of power and by the rotation of the motor to render the starter inoperative and switch means controlled by suction of the engine to control the current affecting the first said means.

11. In apparatus of the described class, in combination an engine, a generator driven from the engine, an engine starter provided with an electric motor mounted to oscillate into and out of operative relation t9 the engine, a storage battery cha rged from the generator to which it is connected, a contactor'fixed to said motor to os- 'cillate therewith and connected to the motor windings, a yieldable contactor normally making contact with the first contactor and connected to the battery and maintaining said contact while the motor oscillates into operative relation. with,

the engine, means on said first contactor to move said yielding contactor without breaking its gagement with the first contactor, manually operable means to control the battery connection and energize the motor at will of the operator, a solenoid connected to and energized from one of the sources of current supply and to be energized when the engine rotates of its own power and to act on the yieldable contactor to hold it out of engagement with the contactor on the motor after the motor has rotated back to its normal position and to maintain said energizing circuit to the motor open until the manually operable means opens the said circuit or until the engine stalls and means controlled by the movement of the engine to control the opening and closing of the circuit to the solenoid.

12. In apparatus of the class described, in combination an engine, a motor movably mounted for starting the engine, a source of electric power,

means connecting the said source to the motor, a switch inserted in the said connecting means to control the supply of power to the motor and controlled by the movement of the motor to its normal position to deprive the motor of power and means controlled by the movement of the engine to open the switch when the engine is running and to close the switch when the engine comes to rest.

13. The combination of an engine, an-electric motor rotatable in a support and having an armature with a. pinion to engage a gear on the engine to start the same, the gears normally out of mesh,-a source of power in circuit with the motor, a normally closed switch to control the source of power and comprising contacts opened by the rotation of the motor in one direction and a coil energized by the source of power to hold the switch contacts open while the engine 14. A motor starter comprising a support, a motor to rotate in the support, a rotatable armature provided with a pinion, a switch to open and close a circuit to the motor, the switch comprising a pair of contacts to engage and close the circuit to the motor, one contact mounted on the motor and movable into and out of contact with the other contact with the rotation of the motor and a coil to separate the contacts when the coil is energized.

15. A starter comprising in combination a support, a motor mounted in the frame to rotate in one direction when energized due to starting torque in the motor, an armature and pinion thereon to rotate in the other direction to engage an engine to start the same, the torque of the motor increasing with the engagement with the engine and decreasing with the starting of the engine to permit the motor to rotate back to normal, a switch arranged to control a power circuit to the motor and comprising a fixed contact and a -movable contact controlled by the movement of the motor and a coil when energized to control the movement of the movable contact to open the power circuit to the motor.

16. Apparatus of the class described, comprising in combination an engine, a current generator driven from the engine, an electric starter motor HOMER P. CHANDLER.

SAMUEL S. MA'I'THES. 

